The president’s cabinet is not a constitutionally enumerated body, meaning that there is no specific provision in the Constitution that requires the creation of a presidential cabinet or designates a cabinet’s duties. Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution allows the president to request opinions from the heads of executive departments, but it does not provide a provision for the necessity of a cabinet. While the Constitution does not provide for the creation of a cabinet, every president since George Washington has had one, though each has varied in its role pertaining to the presidency. George Washington frequently assembled top executive officials to discuss policy matters; recently, however, the cabinet has been convened less frequently.

The Cabinet includes the Vice President, the Director of National Intelligence, the White House Chief of Staff, and the heads of 15 executive departments: the Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, State, Transportation, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs, as well as the Attorney General.